At first, it was called Decoration Day. It was established as a time for the nation to decorate the
graves of the war dead with flowers and to remember these fallen ones. Three years after the
Civil War, on May 5, 1868, Maj. Gen. John A. Logan of the Grand Army of the Republic
declared that Decoration Day should be observed on May 30. Some have suggested that this date was selected because flowers would be in bloom nationwide. By the end of the 19th century, Memorial Day (as it is now more frequently called) involved annual ceremonies conducted throughout the country on May 30.
A Wisconsin federal judge has ruled that the National Day of Prayer is unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Barbara B. Crabb decided in favor of the Madison, Wisconsin-based Freedom From Religion Foundation. Annie Laurie Gaylor is co-president of the Foundation that claims a
membership of 15,000 freethinkers, agnostics, and atheists. Following Judge Crabb’s ruling Ms. Gaylor said, “It’s an invasion of the freedom of conscience of Americans to have their president direct their prayers or tell them to pray” (qtd. in Johnson). If what Gaylor opines is the case then U.S. Presidents (as well as numerous other government leaders) have been guilty since the beginning of the nation.
I am amazed as I continue to study the anatomy and physiology of the body. The body reveals its secrets as I study it organ by organ and system by system. I stand in awe of its complexity and its organization. The more I delve into it, the more there is to know and understand. It is like reading God’s Word. The more one studies it, the more there is to be studied. As an example of the complexity of the human body, consider the human heart. The heart beats 35,000,000 times a year if the heart rate remained at 70-72 beats a minute.
Read MoreIn his book, Satan and the Problem of Evil, Gregory Boyd defines dualism as “the belief that there are two ultimate powers running the world, one good and one evil” (421). More precisely, metaphysical dualism holds that the coexistence of good and evil is eternal and is built into the very nature of things.
Read MoreThe question of God is one of the “perennial questions” which men cannot help asking (Baumer 11-20). In one form or another, the question of God has been present in all stages of human history. Is there really a God? If so, what is He like? If no, then where do I look for answers to life’s most perplexing questions? If yes, then what are my obligations? How can the case for God be argued? These are the kinds of questions that have baffled men for thousands of years. So I will attempt, in this series of essays, to shed some light on this all-encompassing question. In so doing, I intend to set forth evidence sufficient to warrant the conclusion: God exists.
Read MoreThe most powerful argument atheists have to wield against the existence of God is the occurrence of evil in the world. Scottish philosopher and atheist David Hume suggested that a supernatural being which is both omnibenevolent and omnipotent could not exist since neither man nor animal is happy while on this earth. Further, Hume echoes the argument of Greek philosopher Epicurus by asking, "Is he (God) willing to prevent evil, but not able? Then he is impotent. Is he able, but not willing? Then he is malevolent. Is he both able and willing?
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